Curbing for railroad-tracks running along or across streets or roads.



T, ASTON. OURBING FOR RAILROAD TRACKS RUNNING ALONG 0R AGROSS STREETS 0RROADS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 12, 1911.

Patented Sept. 3, 1912.

' Fic- W/7hesses.

UNITED, STATES PATENT OFFICE.

TAGGART ASTON, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

CURBING FOR RAILROAD-TRACKS RUNNING ALONG OR ACROSS STREETS 0R ROADS.

Specification ct Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 3, 1912.

Application filed January 12, 1911. Serial No. 602,340.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, TAGGART ASTON, a British subject, residing in thecity and county of San Francisco and State of California, United Statesof America, have invented new and useful Improvements in Curbing forRailroad -Tracks Running Along or Across Streets or Roads, of which thefollowing is aspecification.

My invention relates to the form of curbing to be used adjacent to therails on railroad tracks running along, or across, streets or roads, orthe like.

Figure 1 is a cross section at one rail J of the proposed form of trackand curb, also showing a plan in perspective of the continuation of thetrack and curb on top. Fig. 2 is an outline of the curbing at a joint inthe rails. Fig. 3 is a section in perspective showing the modificationof the curbing.

It is the main object of my invention to provide on the inner side ofeach rail, where ordinary road vehicles on the existing forms of trackquickly wear away an undesirably deep and wide groove, a metal lip orsurface A (or grille N as in Fig. 3), running longitudinally with, andadjacent to, the rail at a suflicient distance apart therefrom to allowthe flanges of railroad cars free passage, and embedded or inserted intoconcrete curb blocks or continuous mass of concrete B, to take the placeor be auxiliary to the lip on girder tram rails, or the stone, wood, orcomposition blocks as at present used, thus presenting in an economicalmanner a hard wearing surface, at the points requiring same, to resiststreet traffic and to offer the minimum of obstruction to vehiculartraiiic crossing the rails, and, at the same time, by reason of theother improvements combined in the claims for this curbing, providing acurb easily put in place, main tained, or removed, and giving improvedstrength and resistance against the strains which would be imposed onthe curbing and the surfaces adjoining it.

The method of laying the curbing might be, either by arranging the metallip and metal reinforcements in their positions adjacent to the rail andthen filling around them with concrete, or, preferably, by placingpreviously molded blocks containing the metal lip and reinforcements inthe position shown on the drawing, and laid on a prepared bed of cementmortar or other suitable material, the face of the block adjoining theweb of the rail being first rendered with mortar in order to fix it in aproper and permanent position against the rail.

Longitudinal, crosswise, vertical, or diagonal metal reinforcement toconsist of one or more metal rods D, D, D, would strengthen the concretecurbing so that, made in long blocks, it will act as a girder resting,as it will, about one inch above the ties, and can thus be readilypacked and retained at the proper level and surface in the same manneras the rails and ties. The projection H un der the curbing B will occurat intervals of about two to each fifteen foot length of curb, for thepurpose of catching in the material between the ties in order to resistlateral or curbing. This'projection would preferably be reinforced withmetal bars embedded therein. The under side of the curbing might begrooved as at M so as to assist in preventing lateral displacement.Metal projections, such as C, C, can either form a part of the metal lipA, or grille N, or can be riveted or otherwise secured to said metal lipor grille, they will be embedded in the curbing at intervals and willserve to secure the metal lip or grille thereto, also acting as areinforcement to the blocks, and in order to give a more secure hold maybe turned down at the ends. The surface of the metal lip or grille canbe perforated, studded, roughened, or corrugated so as to give a securefoothold for persons or animals. The upper concrete surface of the curbis shown to be below the street surface and roughened as at F so as topermit of a layer of asphalt or surface material Gr covering it andextending with an unbroken surface longitudinal creep or movement of theI from one metal lip to the other, thus permitting of the renewal orrepair of said asphalt or surface material without impairing thepermanency of the curb. A reinforced curb E similar to B, excepting thatthe metal lip A (or N) and projections C, 0, would be omitted, may beused on the outer side of, and adjacent to, the rails, to have the topconcrete surface lower than the road surface.

Fig. 2 is a plan of the outline of the curbing at a oint. of the rails,and shows a notch in the curb at K which is provided to allow for theprojection of the fish-plates and track bonding.

Fig. 3 shows a more economical applica tion of the invention in so faras the metal surface is concerned; it is a metal grille (havingattachments C, 0, similar to those in Fig. 1) consisting of one or moremetal bars joined together at intervals with cross metal strips R, R,having spaces between through which the concrete of the curb may projectwith a roughened surface, thus serving the same purposes as the solidmetal surface A, but would be more economical as it would require alesser weight of metal for the same width of surface. The rail J and thehousing of the curb under the head thereof are shown for illustrativepurposes. Further, it is proposed to use such combination, orcombinations, of the de- Vices or construct-ions shown as may serve toaccomplish any of the purposes enumerate Having thus described myinvention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The combination with a railway, of metal curbings located parallelwith and at a distance from the inner sides of the rails to allow thepassage of the wheels, said curbing having their side edges providedwith downwardly diverging metal projections or arms embedded in thesurface between the rails.

2. A street car trackincluding parallel rails, a surface of concrete andasphalt between said rails, narrow metallic curbings fixed parallel toand at a distance inside of the rail heads, suficient to allow freepassage of wheel flanges, and arms projecting from opposite sides ofsaid curbings and adapted to be embedded in the material between thetracks to resist longitudinal and lateral creeping.

3. A railway track consisting of a concrete bed having projections H atintervals, parallel rails having their flanges supported beneath theconcrete bed, narrow metal curbings extending parallel with andseparated from inside of the rails and havin roughened upper surfaces,arms formed with and projecting downwardly from said curbs into theconcrete material in which they are embedded, and a superposed finishedcoating of asphalt extending between the curbings.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

TAGGART ASTON. Witnesses:

A. K. DAGGETT,

F. F. TUEWING.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0.

